The general director of Georgian TV company Imedi has categorically denied the authenticity of the circulation of his telephone conversation with one of the workers of television in which he acknowledged that Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili was in the loop regarding the broadcast of a scandalous spoof report about a new armed aggression by Russia against Georgia. Giorgi Arveladze told the Rustavi-2 channel that the telephone conversation recording had been faked by Russian intelligence services, Rosbalt reports.
"This is a clear provocation, for which Russian special services are responsible," he said. “It is a fabrication, a collection of phrases from my various conversations. Of course, this conversation took place, it is compiled. With the same success they could publish my conversation with the Dalai Lama and the Pope."
The recording of the telephone conversations between Imedi director general Arveladze and some Eka appeared on the Internet on Monday, Ekho Moskvy radio reports. In this conversation, a man, whose voice resembled the voice of Arveladze, said that the idea of simulating of invasion of Russian troops had been coordinated with Saakashvili, and Saakashvili wanted to not warn viewers about the pretence. Eka, perhaps the head of Imedi’s information and political department, Eka Temalashvili, warned his interlocutor that there is a code of ethics and a law on broadcasting. She also said there would be panic in Georgia if the report was put on the air. At the same time, her interlocutor doesn't see any reason for panic.
